The Banshees of Inisherinn. A white people's movie

[steven clark]

The Banshees of Inisherin is Martin McDonagh's latest film, known for In Bruges (2207), and here teams up that cast of Colin Ferrell and Brenden Gleeson, again in a buddy-buddy pairing. Here, it's in 1923 Ireland, an island off the main coast. The Irish civil war is heard in explosions and gunshots, and Padraic Suilleabhain (Ferrell), a likable if simple man with a pet donkey, goes to meet his friend Colm Doherty (Gleeson), who ignores him.
Colm becomes moody, demanding Padraic break off with him. Colm considers Padraic light-headed and trivial. Colm is a fiddler, and fears for his own demise, and is obsessed with writing a fiddle tune "to be remembered." It is called the Banshees of Inisherin. When Pedraic persists in staying friends, badgering Colm to know what he did wrong, Colm finally threatens to cut off his fingers if Padraic won't leave him alone, and does so in gruesome detail.
It's kind of like King Lear and the Fool having a cosmic breakup.

The story also cuts to Siobhain (Kerry Condon), Padraic's sister, who sleeps in the same room, reads, and slowly begins her escape to the mainland.
McDonagh creates a stark, dramatic but also funny movie about obsession, the rigors of friendship and solitude, ending with a reconciliation that is hardly happy and almost Shakespearean. It's also interesting that we never finally hear the tune. What also is interesting is Colm is so determined to keep his music going, but how can he do that if he has no fingers? Perhaps a testament to Irish pig headedness and determination. After all, the Irish just kicked the British out and now they're a free people, and the first thing they is start killing each other as the IRA and Free State keep the war going.

I liked the film and its bleak but reasonable storyline. And, it's all white. Yes, no minorities. Maybe we might see a WN message in here, as we strive to be pure and yet seem to chop ourselves up. It was, and is, a very cathartic film.